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The Westfield News Serving Westfield, Southwick, and the surrounding Hilltowns
“Where there is unity, there is always victory.” — PUBLILIUS SYRUS
www.thewestfieldnews.com VOL. 85 NO. 168
75 cents
TUESDAY, JULY 19, 2016
Conservation Commission discusses disc golf facility By GREG FITZPATRICK Correspondent SOUTHWICK – The Conservation Commission held a public hearing on Monday night regarding the ongoing development of the proposed disc golf facility in town. See related story “New Sport ...” Page 9
New England Disc Golf Center was represented by partial business owners, Randy Brown and Freda Brown. As Randy Brown presented his revised plan to the Planning Board on July 11, this particular public hearing was a check in for the conservation commission, as they last met with the Brown’s several months ago. Randy Brown discussed the two foot bridges that would be placed throughout the 18-hole course. Each foot bridge would be 30 in. wide with two logs side by side and a plank down the middle for people to cross from hole to hole.
Education and Economic Development with Local Businesses By NORMAN HALLS Contributor to The Westfield News There is a greater need for education to be involved with local businesses and the possibility of new businesses coming into the community. “Investing in education and skills has long been considered a key driver of economic growth” According to Hawkes Ugur report: “Evidence of the relationship between education, skills and economic growth”. It is well established that improvements in education are essential with long-term improvements in economic performance. In many cases, there has been innovation from education situations improving the capacity that stimulates the economy with new development and technologies with ground-breaking businesses. With new technology businesses bring all types of needed skills. In the Worcester Business Journal, June 2014 wrote: “Education has long been called ‘the great equalizer’ in the United States”. “There is a strong link connecting education and economic development in a community”, said Dr. Phil Pepper in the Mississippi Business Journal. In the column it says: “knowing what must be done and doing it is always challenging”. In recent years, educational leaders, colleges and local school systems, have been involved in some form that has contributed to the area communities businesses in new technology proficiency. That is needed to draw new businesses to the community. A number of foreign countries participate in an education/business partnership. Especially in European countries, where colleges assist in research for new products, product material, improving performance and training. Michigan State University, Eli Broad College of Business has a number of centers and institutes that partner with corporations and the community on research and other projects. Public technical schools could pursue a similar program that may offset the cost of some programs. Advanced manufacturing, large or small, is critical to expand the economy in any community and retain skilled employees. Having a foundation in any community as manufacturing has closely ties to other sectors, i.e. health care advancement, energy independence, security, environmental sustainability, and transportation. There are many benefits to having an airport in your community, especially when there is Federal unit like the Air Guard that stationed at the airport, with unit like the Air Guard that maintains the runways. As we know, many companies are shifting away from the suburban areas. In the last U.S. census, almost two-thirds (64%) of college-educated 25 to 34 year olds said they looked for a job after they chose the city where they wanted to live. Western Massachusetts has a lot to offer any young person and adults. There are the best educational programs that anyone would want. If one is looking for entertainment, there are many in the four seasons. There are many activities from skiing, hunting, museums, hall of fames, Tanglewood, great performances at colleges and universities. Suburban settings have more to offer and must be marketed that way.
The Conservation Commission elected to have the partial business owners of New England Disc Golf Facility come back on Aug. 1 for the next Conservation Commission meeting. Having revised changes to show the Conservation Commission, Randy Brown will now look to take the next step with those changes. “Those changes need to be passed along to DEP (Mass DEP) for review,” said Brown. The main changes were the new location of the parking area as well as the two pull-off areas. In order to allow fire trucks to get through in case of emergency, the pulloff areas are necessary. “It’s just a widening of the driveway,” said Brown. “The pull-off areas are 40 feet long by 10 feet wide.” Brown and the rest of the partners will attend a public hearing on Tuesday July 26 in front of the Planning Board.
Conservation Commission members Frank Soleimani and Christopher Pratt look over the minutes before the start of the meeting. (Photo by Greg Fitzpatrick)
Jacob’s Ladder Business Assoc. sponsors Shop Local contest and Scholarship By AMY PORTER Correspondent HUNTINGTON – The Jacob’s Ladder Business Association (JLBA), representing 50 businesses in the hilltowns and beyond, is once again sponsoring a “Shop Local and Win” contest. To enter, shoppers must spend $20 or more at five JLBA member businesses, and receive a ticket for the contest from each, or save their receipts. After collecting five tickets from five participating businesses, shoppers must complete the contact information on the back, and send all five completed tickets or receipts to JLBA at PO Box 19, Huntington, MA. Deadline is Oct. 1. Two lucky shoppers will win $100 gift certificates to spend at any JLBA business. The winners will be drawn at the Hilltown Fall Festival during the first weekend of October (Oct. 1 and 2) on the town green in Huntington. Contestants do not need to be present to win. New this year, is an additional “Social Media” component to the Shop Local contest, giving the shopper with the most likes/ shares of their photo post of a JLBA purchase the chance to win a $50 gift certificate. This winner will also be announced at the festival. A list of JLBA members may be found on the website at www.jlba.org. “Every $1 you spend at a local business helps the local community. That is not necessarily true if you shop at a chain store,” said JLBA president Michele Kenney. Every year, the JLBA also awards a $250 scholarship to a graduating high school senior that plans to study business at an accredited college, university, or business school. Students from western Hampden and
Michele Kenney, president and Derrick Mason, past president of the Jacob’s Ladder Business Association. (Photo by Amy Porter) Hampshire, and eastern Berkshire counties are eligible to apply. The application deadline for seniors that graduated in 2016 has been extended until August 5th. JLBA’s goal is to encourage young entrepreneurs to learn about and explore
the possibilities of becoming a business owner. For a scholarship application, students may contact Kenney at Southernhilltownsaec@gmail.com or on the JLBA Facebook page at “Jacob’s Ladder Business Association.”
NY, Massachusetts sue Volkswagen over emissions cheating By DAVID KLEPPER Associated Press ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — New York state and Massachusetts are suing Volkswagen and its affiliates Audi and Porsche over diesel emissions cheating, alleging that the German automakers defrauded customers by selling diesel vehicles equipped with software allowing them to cheat emissions testing. The lawsuits, announced Tuesday, allege that Volkswagen and its affiliates sold more than 40,000 vehicles in the two states with so-called “defeat devices” installed. Furthermore, the complaint accuses company employees of trying to cover up the cheating by submitting false documents to the two states and destroying incriminating paperwork. “The allegations against Volkswagen, Audi and Porsche reveal a culture of deeply-rooted corporate arrogance, combined with a conscious disregard for the rule of law or the protection of public health and the environment,” said New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman. “These suits should serve as a siren in every corporate board room, that if any company engages in this type of calculated and systematic illegality, we will bring the full force of the law — and seek the stiffest possible sanctions — to protect our citizens.” A message left with Volkswagen on Tuesday morning was not immediately returned. The legal action seeks “substantial penalties.” Schneiderman and his Massachusetts counterpart, Maura Healey, planned to discuss the details of the case at a Tuesday morning press conference in New York City. The two Democrats are the top law enforcement officials in their respective states.
California Attorney General Kamala Harris announces a settlement with Volkswagen during a news conference Tuesday, June 28, 2016, in San Francisco. (AP Photo/Eric Risberg)
The suit comes after the German automaker agreed to spend up to $15.3 billion to other settle consumer and government lawsuits over the emissions cheating, first disclosed in 2015. Schneiderman and Healey argue that settlement did not resolve claims regarding violating state environmental laws and did not cover all the affected vehicles. “With today’s action, we want to make clear to all auto manufacturers that violating laws designed to protect our environment and our public health is unacceptable and will be punished with significant penalties,” Healey said. Maryland’s attorney general is also
expected to file suit, according to a statement from Schneiderman’s office. The suit alleges that Volkswagen and Audi, followed by Porsche, began installing the cheating software in more than a dozen U.S. models beginning in 2008. The software was designed to alter the emissions system during government testing to ensure nitrogen oxide emissions were within allowable limits. The prosecutors say consumers who purchased one of the vehicles believed they were buying a “green diesel” car, even though the vehicles illegally emitted pollutants linked to respiratory disease, elevated ozone levels and smog.